Post by SheWolf on Mar 18, 2006 18:01:35 GMT 1
From Scotsman news
A SOAP star whose character is battling cancer is set to run in the first Edinburgh Forthside Half Marathon to raise money for Leukaemia Research.
Emmerdale actress Ursula Marsden, who plays non-Hodgkin's lymphoma sufferer Alice Wilson in the programme, has been training for the inaugural event along the city's waterfront on Sunday, March 26.
Her inspiration stems from the death of two of her husband's relatives to the blood cancer, and she is also using the event to prepare for April's London Marathon.
A galaxy of well-known faces from other television favourites such as Taggart and River City will join 4000 people, including elite athletes, for the Evening News-backed event.
Chris Chittel and Jeff Hordley, who play Emmerdale's Eric Pollard and Cain Dingle, will test themselves along the 13-mile route, which heads through the Edinburgh Forthside area, a huge swathe of land being regenerated by Forth Ports.
Shabana Akhtar of Taggart and River City fame, Monarch of the Glen actor Hamish Clark and Holby City's James Pearson will also be running for the charity, alongside former Spooks star Shauna MacDonald.
Together, they make up members of Leukaemia Research's celebrity running team, the Banana Army, who run at events around the UK in distinctive yellow T-shirts.
A string of top athletes will be hitting the tarmac, including Kenyan Paul Kirui, winner of the World half-marathon in 2004, and Scottish international runner Roz Alexander.
Marsden, whose character has struggled with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma throughout a pregnancy on the long-running ITV soap, said today: "The running team has raised over £1 million each year from running events across the UK for such a vital cause. I'm proud to be joining the team as they make their mark on this new event in Edinburgh."
She added: "My husband's grandfather and uncle both died of it and it's awful. His granddad was elderly but his uncle was only in his 50s and it came in a very aggressive form. It's a horrible coincidence that his family have been affected by it and now I am in contact with it through the show.
"The buzz you get from running is amazing and the Banana Army runners and supporters really cheer you on. It's a fantastic way of keeping fit and at the same time helping raise funds and awareness for such a deserving charity. With the rest of the Emmerdale team taking part in the event, we're delighted to be supporting our team patron, Liz McColgan."
Hamish Clark said his training for the big day was going well.
"Each year in Scotland over 2000 people are diagnosed with a blood cancer and Leukaemia Research is funding life saving research in Edinburgh and across the rest of the UK so that we can beat these blood cancers," he added.
Race director Ian Ladbrooke said: "We have got quite a decent field which we are very pleased with for a first year and we have Liz McColgan starting the race. Sixty per cent of the people taking part are in the EH postcode and another 20 per cent are from other parts of Scotland."
Liz McColgan said: "We have about 50 celebrities who support us, though not everyone runs in every event. It is a great team to be a part of and it gives runners the opportunity to run with celebrities while raising money."
To sponsor the Leukaemia Research running team, visit www.banana-army.com
A SOAP star whose character is battling cancer is set to run in the first Edinburgh Forthside Half Marathon to raise money for Leukaemia Research.
Emmerdale actress Ursula Marsden, who plays non-Hodgkin's lymphoma sufferer Alice Wilson in the programme, has been training for the inaugural event along the city's waterfront on Sunday, March 26.
Her inspiration stems from the death of two of her husband's relatives to the blood cancer, and she is also using the event to prepare for April's London Marathon.
A galaxy of well-known faces from other television favourites such as Taggart and River City will join 4000 people, including elite athletes, for the Evening News-backed event.
Chris Chittel and Jeff Hordley, who play Emmerdale's Eric Pollard and Cain Dingle, will test themselves along the 13-mile route, which heads through the Edinburgh Forthside area, a huge swathe of land being regenerated by Forth Ports.
Shabana Akhtar of Taggart and River City fame, Monarch of the Glen actor Hamish Clark and Holby City's James Pearson will also be running for the charity, alongside former Spooks star Shauna MacDonald.
Together, they make up members of Leukaemia Research's celebrity running team, the Banana Army, who run at events around the UK in distinctive yellow T-shirts.
A string of top athletes will be hitting the tarmac, including Kenyan Paul Kirui, winner of the World half-marathon in 2004, and Scottish international runner Roz Alexander.
Marsden, whose character has struggled with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma throughout a pregnancy on the long-running ITV soap, said today: "The running team has raised over £1 million each year from running events across the UK for such a vital cause. I'm proud to be joining the team as they make their mark on this new event in Edinburgh."
She added: "My husband's grandfather and uncle both died of it and it's awful. His granddad was elderly but his uncle was only in his 50s and it came in a very aggressive form. It's a horrible coincidence that his family have been affected by it and now I am in contact with it through the show.
"The buzz you get from running is amazing and the Banana Army runners and supporters really cheer you on. It's a fantastic way of keeping fit and at the same time helping raise funds and awareness for such a deserving charity. With the rest of the Emmerdale team taking part in the event, we're delighted to be supporting our team patron, Liz McColgan."
Hamish Clark said his training for the big day was going well.
"Each year in Scotland over 2000 people are diagnosed with a blood cancer and Leukaemia Research is funding life saving research in Edinburgh and across the rest of the UK so that we can beat these blood cancers," he added.
Race director Ian Ladbrooke said: "We have got quite a decent field which we are very pleased with for a first year and we have Liz McColgan starting the race. Sixty per cent of the people taking part are in the EH postcode and another 20 per cent are from other parts of Scotland."
Liz McColgan said: "We have about 50 celebrities who support us, though not everyone runs in every event. It is a great team to be a part of and it gives runners the opportunity to run with celebrities while raising money."
To sponsor the Leukaemia Research running team, visit www.banana-army.com